Yearning
by NewPaladin
Summary: During the night, her yearning for her son grows stronger. Selan/Maxim


I was replaying Lufia 2 because it's a great game and I love it. And around the time Maxim and Selan leave behind Jeros, I was wondering; why don't they warp back some times and look after their son? Especially since there are a few resting/waiting periods where it were okay. But thinking about it, I think I understand now and just had to put that thought into a fic. Especially because Lufia needs more fics. (Moar Tia plz)

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They were in the middle of nowhere, on their way to Aleyn – Two weeks after Selan and Maxim had left behind their newborn son. Selan had hoped that the yearning for her baby would grow more bearable the more she was distracted by fighting but it didn't.

Her heart hurt just like when they had to leave Maxim behind in the Ancient Tower. As if something was trying to rip her chest apart, tearing at her heart as it desperately tried to keep beating. The strength of her emotions had surprised her back then and it did again now. The shock over the fact that she and Maxim had made their son a target for the Sinistrals by simply existing and that he would be safer if they weren't there didn't help either.

Sighing, Selan sat up from her bedroll. They were camping in a small cave at the foot of the mountains. Guy was keeping guard at the entrance; the campfire had burnt low and was little more than a reddish speck against the dark. Selan pulled her blanket around herself and rested her back against the cave wall.

She could be in Parcelyte in a matter of seconds.'Warp' had been one of the first spells she had learnt when she had started her training; her aunt had insisted and when her instructor heard that she had a talent for magic, he made her study magic more than she had initially wanted to. Sometimes magic could turn a losing battle into a victory.

She could sneak into the house and just look at her baby for a moment. Caress his little head, his red hair still nothing but a fuzzy tuft. She could just hear him breathe, make sure that no other monsters had come to kill him.

A loud snore from her right side interrupted Selan's train of thought. Dekar turned, snuggling deeper into his bedroll, and continued sleeping. Selan grumbled lowly to herself. The image of her sleeping son was still lingering in her mind as she looked to her left. Maxim was sleeping peacefully.

Sometimes Selan wondered how he was feeling about his son. She hadn't seen him struggle after they left Parcelyte. She yearned to ask him but it wasn't easy for her. Talking about feelings had never been her strength and she was a bit afraid that bringing up Jeros would rip open wounds that couldn't be easily closed. What if, in the end, both of them were so eaten up by their worry about their son that they'd make a mistake and fall in battle? If they'd fail, who had the power to protect the world from the Sinistrals?

Sighing yet again, Selan rested her head on her arms. Besides, if she were to warp to Parcelyte, would she be able to warp back safely? Warping wasn't easy and not particularly exact. There was a reason why magical instructors told people to only warp to towns. After her own instructor told her of a student who had tried to warp to a hunter's hut in the mountains and re-appeared over a deep gorge, Selan had never tried.

"Are you crying," a sleepy sounding Maxim suddenly asked. Selan startled but hid it well. When she raised her head, Maxim was half-sitting, rubbing his eyes, and looking at her. She smiled.

"Of course not." She scooted over until she could lay her head on his shoulder. Maxim groaned lightly as he leaned back against the cave wall as well and put his arm around her. "What's wrong?"

"This cave is really uncomfortable," he mumbled and kissed the top of her head. Selan chuckled lowly. "So, what happened? Why are you awake?"

"Nothing."

"Selan…"

She sighed. How could Maxim always tell when she was lying? "I was thinking of… Parcelyte." She couldn't bring herself to say her son's name. Now, in the safety of Maxim's embrace, she just might start crying and she didn't want that.

Maxim was silent for a moment until he squeezed her closer. "I miss Jeros as well." Selan twitched involuntarily.

"I won't even ask how you know that," Selan mumbled in response to hide her embarrassment at being so obvious.

"Since we left home, I've been thinking about nothing else." Maxim's voice was strangely gruff. Selan pulled back to look him in the eye. In the dark of the cave, he held nothing back. He looked as worried and sad as Selan was feeling. His openness drove the tears that Selan had been reluctant to share into her eyes.

"Maxim," she whispered and buried her face in his chest, hugging him so tightly that she heard him gasp lowly. "I was thinking about warping home to see him. Just for a moment," she admitted, her tears silently running down her cheeks.

"It would make it only harder. I don't know if I could leave him behind for a second time," he argued, his voice watery.

"I know." Selan took a deep breath. "I know."

They were clinging to another for a long time. Selan soon slipped back into sleep, her head still lying on Maxim's chest. Maxim was reluctant to move; he didn't want to wake Selan by shifting her to her bedroll nor did he actually want to let go of her. Just as his eyes fell close, Maxim decided that falling asleep with his wife in his arms was worth the pain in his back he would have in a few hours.

That night, both of them dreamt that they were at home, playing with their son.


End file.
